Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable. Psalm 145:3 KJV

Giving God praise may be one of the least understood spiritual disciplines of our day.  It’s incredibly valuable because it puts us in the right position relative to God. When we give God praise, wrote Ruth and Warren Myers, “We consent to His gracious, transforming work in our lives; we agree that He can work in us, so that we’ll be willing and able to do His will. In other words, we choose to let Him be God in our lives. This is our greatest privilege, the highest thing we can do.”[1]

Whether through speaking, singing or silence, the practice of praise can be cultivated entirely outside the circumstances of our lives because we’re told to praise not just for what God gives, but because of Who He is and what He does.  (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

David was a prime praiser. He praised God first, then poured out his honest feelings, his complaints, his petitions, concluding again with praise. Notice this pattern in Psalm 42. He chose to keep on praising in spite of how bad things seemed to be going.

I love the advice of Charles Spurgeon: “Before you go out into the world, wash your face in the clear crystal of praise. Bury each yesterday in the fine linen and spices of thankfulness.”[2]  Yes, you can pause to praise Him as you rise in the morning, whisper it throughout the day and breathe it as your last thought of the night.  God, teach us the practice of praise!

 

Resource Reading:  Psalm 42:1-11

[1] Ruth Myers and Warren Myers. 31 Days of Praise (Sisters: Multnomah, 1994), 23.

[2] Charles Spurgeon, “Praise and Thanksgiving.” Elisabethelliot.org. July/August 2002, http://www.elisabethelliot.org/newsletters/2002-07-08.pdf, accessed December 11, 2016.